OFIMEËTREËLICIA

by Khampostel

Christmas is short and forgettable

"IS IT A GIFT?! FOR ME?!"

"Yes, Yoselin, it's a present for you."

"SIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!" Yoselin began to jump for joy in the middle of the room. Next to her, her older brother, Paco, smiled, although his enthusiasm seemed more restrained.

Across from them, next to the magnificent Christmas tree in the living room, stood Ram. Although he experienced no emotion in handing over that blissful gift, he understood the importance of this gesture in the annual ritual called 'Christmas'. Without rushing, Ram pulled out a gift-wrapped package from his backpack and handed it to Yoselin. The girl, without wasting a second, took it immediately.

The next thing that happened puzzled Paco and Ram.

Yoselin, who until a few seconds before had been euphoric, suddenly adopted a serious expression and began to study the package with a coldness that was rare for her. Shaking it and measuring its volume with the palms of her hands, she continued to analyze every detail and even sniffed the loose ends of the wrapping several times.

Then, Yoselin lifted the package high up and dropped it to the ground. He repeated this action over and over again.

"Huh?" muttered Ram, unable to understand what the girl was doing.

Paco opened his mouth to reprimand his sister, but before he could say a single word, Yoselin turned and asked Ram, "Is it magic?"

Ram finally understood.

"No, Yoselin, it's not magic."

Yoselin's stern expression changed to one of obvious sadness.

Paco looked worriedly at his friend; Ram hadn't expected things to escalate this way, but he already had a few lines of what to say next thought out.

"Yoselin, I know I promised you 'magic' gifts before, but I don't think it would be appropriate to give you gifts like that at this time," Ram said, taking on a serious countenance like that of an adult, although he clearly wasn't, just like his brother.

"Then when?" protested the girl.

"Be patient, you'll get them soon enough."

"Next year?" asked Yoselin with a cold stare.

"Definitely ... yes."

Yoselin looked uncomfortable at this answer and looked down at the floor. Paco and Ram then prepared themselves for the worst; they both knew too well the prolonged tantrums of that hyperactive little girl.

After a few seconds of silence, Yoselin finally looked up and said, "Okay, I'll wait."

Her older brother, Paco, was surprised, while Ram, on the other hand, showed no expression.

"That's fine with me. I'll keep my word, don't doubt it," Ram said with a slight smile. "Ah, maybe you should open your gift at once. I think you'll like it anyway."

Yoselin, without wasting any more time, unwrapped her present: a colorful pink box filled with drawings of fantastic creatures dazzled before her.

"IT'S PONIS TOYS!" the little girl exclaimed in surprise.

"Yes, the entire collection," Ram confirmed. Indeed, inside the box were six pony figures of different colors and manes, along with an eye-catching glass tree.

"YEEEE, HOW CUTE! I LOVE PONIES," Yoselin said excitedly as she looked through the laminated box and the pony figures inside. But suddenly, her joy faded, and again Yoselin's countenance fell again.

"Now what's wrong?"

"It's just...I'm getting too old for these toys," Yoselin muttered crestfallen, fingering the age label on the pony box.

Ram grimaced crookedly. He hadn't anticipated this. Getting these pony toys hadn't been a problem, and he didn't mind trading them in for others. However, he had promised his friend Paco that he would bring him a special gift for his sister for Christmas. Given the time he had had and Yoselin's character, he should have assumed that she would not be pleased. This was his mistake.

"I'm sorry, maybe I should..." said Ram.

"Yoselin, don't be like that. Ram is giving you these toys as a gift, you should accept it," said Paco, supporting his friend.

"Well, yes they are nice, I think... I can put them on top of my closet together with my stuffed animals," said Yoselin little excited, turning the box around several times.

Ram looked at the girl a little worried. Not because Yoselin didn't like the gift, but because of the changes he was beginning to notice in her. How had he not noticed it before? Yoselin was growing up, and he was just beginning to understand that she was no longer the screaming little girl he remembered.

Yoselin was entering a new stage in her life, a stage in which he definitely shouldn't get involved....

Maybe he shouldn't keep his promise to her.

"Hey, come on, take a picture of it and send it to mom. She's going to love that you have these toys," Paco said.

"Really?" replied Yoselin in surprise.

"Yes, really. She likes these things, and so does my aunt. Come on, take a picture of her by the Christmas tree."

"Okay," Yoselin replied again cheerfully.

Both brothers approached the Christmas tree, and with their phones began to take pictures. On the other side, Ram watched the scene with a blank stare.

"Hey, Ram, is something wrong?" asked Paco, noticing his friend's dark countenance.

Ram was startled.

"No, nothing, I just thought you could sell them if you want. They're collectibles; I'm sure you'd get a good sum of money for them," Ram said trying to sound casual and calm.

Yoselin's eyes instantly sparkled, and Ram understood that he had made a mistake. But before he said anything else, Yoselin stood up, grabbed the box of toys and headed for the door of the house.

"Hey, where are you going! You're not seriously thinking about..." her brother yelled at her.

"THANK YOU, UNCLE RAM! I REALLY LIKED YOUR GIFT, BUT I HAVE TO GO TO MY FRIEND'S HOUSE WHO IS CALLING ME. I'LL BE BACK, PACO, SEE YOU..." left Yoselin from the living room straight to the entrance of the house. Shortly after, the door was heard opening and the sound of a bicycle bell in the distance.

Yoselin was gone.

Next to the Christmas tree, Paco and Ram stood in silence. Paco just shook his head. He got up and offered his friend a cup of hot chocolate and cookies.

Ram readily accepted them, as well as Paco's apology for his sister's behavior.

Both friends sat down and drank from their hot beverages.

Then, at last, Ram noticed the obvious.

"Uncle Ram?" repeated Ram belatedly. Paco shrugged his shoulders.

Comments

[Mystic Sunrise]

... Yeah. How did this get past moderation? Stories have been deleted because the author thinks just mentioning characters is enough in the first chapter.

[Khampostel]

11782260
really? Well there will be more ponies later, but for now it should be enough, how do I pass the filters? it's Christmas! ha ha ha. Have a good time!

[Loganberry]

11782260
To be fair, there is a section dealing with pony toys, and there are six of them. Whether that's enough to satisfy the site rule that stories have to be related to the MLP universe at the time of submission, well, that's for the site staff and not me to decide.